2nd battery + computer controlled lighting

I was demo'ing my car to a few officers that were taking a lunch break at a local watering hole... and they *cough* complained *cough* about not having enough stuff to look at....

well, only 2, and they said that my console sucked(the pro-copper)but they liked what I did with it,AND they wanted to see "more gadgets"......(and graphics,on the vehicle)

sooo.....

I stripped out all the PD wiring, which I should have done previously... ran some wire(I did the calculations,including resistance,amperage,voltage drop,etc) to the rear,and installed a SECONDARY battery,isolated,which charges BOTH batteries when the car is running, and seperates the batteries when the vehicle is off,meaning the rear battery can run all the electronics,if it dies, then you can start the car, recharge the battery in the rear,without issue, AND, if for some reason the FRONT battery is completely discharged, you can link the front + back battery, to allow the front battery to get a charge from the back battery, and "jump" the car, with it's secondary battery..

NOW, I want to show you what you can do with "off the shelf" commercial equipment, thats in use everyday, THAT, TBH, guys like "you" pioneered, people who wanted something, learned how to build it, MADE it, then sold it.

...Installed a Code3 RLS WITH touch screen interface, so all controls can be handled by the touch screen,with the physical control head as a backup in case the computer crashes...the officers really liked that , since they have to use the computer so much... it's easier just to put a few buttons on the screen to control lighting as well....I kinda cheated though, instead of making something myself, I used a commercially available product, although it was inexpensive, and cost only a few $$ more than something I would have put together myself..

....Installed a Command Console, and couldnt wait for them to SHIP the screws,(don't ask me how they "forgot") so I just used ones I had laying around, a quick coat of hammered paint will take care of the steel screws... or, I can just wait for them to send me the right ones...

Pics, from my super secret mountain hideaway

The trunk, tire mounted vertically,spare battery mounted behind the trunk organizer,on the left shelf is the radio equipment, the right shelf is the communications controller, that has GPS,Wi-Fi,and AMPS phone in one unit, and the RLS "brain".

As you can see, the auxiliary battery, mounted in it's box, the box bolted to the floor,the MIC in the picture is for the RLS,I kept it back there to demonstrate the ability to maintain cover, yet still issue commands (over the PA),and, a trusty 400 Watt inverter,nothing special. I'm aware of the hydrogen produced by batteries, the battery box does it's best to trap it, AND, since hydrogen is lighter then air, it will tend to pool at the trunklid, and be released upon opening the trunk,but the amount of hydrogen produced by batteries is miniscule,and not really an issue..

Here you can see the touchscreen interface for the RLS siren, it's a DUPLICATE of the physical control head,which allows the same functions, regardless of which one you use..

At the top of the picture, you can see the physical RLS control head, as well as the Command Console, and the radio equipment I had installed in the old console.

The rest of the console, it's too big to fit in one photo, and the flash totally killed the shot, but, oh well

lets just say, yes, I know I need to clean my windshield,heh...for those that are interested, the little black square above the windshield in the center, is the antenna for satellite radio.

I'm still using roadrunner, very stable, easy to use, a pleasure to the eye, a great program overall. some of the officers get a kick out of the fact that I have that song in my library...

Just a few random shots

I have TWO different GPS variants, not only do I have IN car GPS navigation, I also have a GPS tracking device, that can track my car pretty much anywhere in the country, even if it's removed, or goes underground, it'll still transmit it's last known position.If someone parks it in an underground parking garage, I'll know its in there... hehe.All this can be tracked from 2 places, one, from another car, with an RF reciever, OR from any internet connected computer.Think of it as a mix between lojack and onstar, with all the benefits of both, but none of the shortcomings.

The computer is a Data911 MDT, it's a two(three) piece unit, a monitor/touchscreen, a "brain", and the power supply,it can operate on as little as 6 volts,has 2 USB ports, 4 serial ports(3 really, one is dedicated to the touchscreen),NTSC video input, PCMCIA slots, pretty well equipped.I have it on the rear battery, so I can have it on for awhile before it's an issue, it draws ~4 amps with full backlight/power, and about 500ma in standby,with backlight off,and about 20 MICROAMPS, while off.

I'm still running roadrunner(obviously),thanks to the developer(s)/beta testers for such a nice application.The secondary battery install is/was done with an inexpensive battery isolator, which will later be replaced with a better, microprocessor controlled, "smart" isolator/combiner.

BTW,due to the "issue" with the previous thread, I'll state, VERY CLEARLY...

All lighting/sirens are disabled via Fuses/kill switches when the vehicle is on the road.In addition, even WHEN fuses are in/kill switches enabled,the drivers door MUST be open for any lighting/"noises" to be on.

All my primary warning is "stashed", it's stuff I can suction cup on the windshield/back deck when needed.I can't put on mirrorbeams,concealed strobes,headlight/tail light flashers, etc. at a moments notice, so those have to stay installed,and since they're hidden, MSP doesnt have a problem with it,since the fuses are pulled during transport anyway.. when I get where i'm going, I put the fuses back in, engage the kill switch, throw the different lights I have in the window/rear deck, and demo.

THIS VEHICLE IS A COMPANY OWNED DEMONSTRATION VEHICLE,I OWN A COMPANY THAT SELLS/INSTALLS EMERGENCY VEHICLE LIGHTING AND EQUIPMENT, IT IS NOT OWNED BY A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY, AND I AM NOT A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER!

what do you guys think? think I took care of everything?Any suggestions? in particular, anything you see that sticks out, in a good (or bad) way?
(I noticed that I need an alignment, BAD)
wow, that was a long post...

impressive. Very nice. I too have a vic. Very nice layout of the trunk. How are you able to track your car?

APRS, it's a mode use by amateur radio operators to broadcast formatted packets that contain messages,NMEA SENTENCES(your LAT/LON coordinates),and other misc things, like weather information...

an example not everyone has theirs on all the time,mine is wired in a special way, so that if someone so much as BREATHS on the car, the tracking system will turn on..

Although it does have a high "Fuz" factor it is a very good install. Good thinking on the battery in the trunk.

TY, with "katrina" like situations happening "more often", a lot of agencies are looking at backup solutions... PERSONALLY, if I'm in a situation where I have to worry about my car starting, or not being able to get gasoline(can't keep the car idling to keep the battery charged), I still have all my communications capabilities(radio,satellite,internet,etc),and don't have to worry about killing my battery,if I do manage to kill the rear battery,I can STILL start the car,and it'll charge it back up....

"fuz" factor is a requirement, I'm selling a look, just as much as I'm selling the equipment, I INSTALL the equipment as well, so it's my rolling resume..

if any of you guys were to try and get a job as a custom installer, and tell your prospective boss, "I put a custom system in my car", they don't know what you're talking about, they could think you put a sub in an enclosure, and you call that "custom", but if you say, "take a walk out with me to the parking lot, I'll show you what I can do",and show them an OEM looking,computer controlled audio/video/navigation system, you're 50x more likely to get the job...

In a LOT of ways,my line of work is just like "other" installs, but there are other things to "worry" about, technical issues like SWR,groundplanes, programming,etc. that make what I do a specialty

Always on carpc with back up battery

i'm looking at charging the secondary battery in my system via solar charger and leaving my carpc on all the time. do you thing a solar charger could keep the secondary charger topped off enough to power a pc in hibernation mode?

i'm looking at charging the secondary battery in my system via solar charger and leaving my carpc on all the time. do you thing a solar charger could keep the secondary charger topped off enough to power a pc in hibernation mode?

In hibernation mode, the PC should draw ZERO current, because when hibernated, it suspends to disk,reading the memory, and transferring everything in memory to the HD, and shuts down the computer... when you start it up, it loads the memory FROM the hard disk, and knows where you left off,it's called a "saved state".

STANDBY, is different, it throttles the CPU down,turns off the monitor,hard drive, etc, but still draws current...

if you set up the computer to hibernate, you can have it set so that you just press a button, and it will hibernate, press it again, and it'll "wake up".

the average carputer would draw ~3-4 amps when in use, current solar cell technology would NOT be cheap to maintain 3-4 amps, it'd probably run you ~1000$,and your roof...

what i'm really looking for is exactly the same set up as you have but i want to leave the pc on all the time so i can hijack it using loginforfree. obviously while the car is running this is not a problem when the car is running but would a solar panel with 3.2 watt, 18.8VCC, and 170mA - or similar specs - be enough just to keep the battery from getting drained by the pc in standby? the other benefit of having a second battery with a solar charger (assuming it's reasonable) is that you wouldn't have to worry about boot times, power controllers, auto-shutdown, etc.

If so, several of the members on this board, ESPECIALLY those that ride motorcycles might be interested to know about certain comments this "Law Enforcement Wannabe" allegedly made about intentionally causing riders to crash.

Are you the same individual referred to on the website johnparkssucks.com
If so, several of the members on this board, ESPECIALLY those that ride motorcycles might be interested to know about certain comments this "Law Enforcement Wannabe" allegedly made about intentionally causing riders to crash.

It looks like him. Has the same Tag number and pictures of the same car as posted on JohnParksSucks.com.
If so then...Man you're busted. What a poser.